Mailbag: Headline wrongly implies support for a hotel [corrected]

A front-page article in the Daily Pilot shows a headline that claims Newport residents overwhelmingly support a hotel on the site of the old City Hall. This is very misleading, given that there were only two options presented.

The hotel is probably the lesser of two evils, the other being yet another condo development for the area. There are quite a few of us in town who didn't want the City Hall to be moved in the first place.

There was a time when the former City Hall site was a source of pride for the city, and it ought to be considered as an historical landmark, perhaps reconfigured as a library/community center. But the city's desire for more revenue to pay for the elaborate civic cathedral built elsewhere has compromised its judgment.

Many years ago, when another City Council tried to re-locate City Hall, the voters turned it down and voted out the mayor for that matter. I don't recall getting the chance to vote on anything this time. It seems our civic leaders do learn from the past, to the detriment to the rest of us.

Now we know how the Orange County Board of Supervisors celebrated Earth Day — with a 4-0 vote to oppose removal of the fire pits.

Air quality and public health concerns didn't keep politicians from touting memories of first kisses and apple pie. All this, without even a pretense of interest in scientific reports of data the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD), is still collecting.

The supervisors, along with Assemblyman Allan Mansoor (R-Costa Mesa), state Sen. Mimi Walters (R-Irvine) and Assemblyman Travis Allen, all rushed in to take a stand. Why wait for the data when constituents clamor?

FOR THE RECORD: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this letter incorrectly identified Assemblyman Travis Allen as a county supervisor.

Supervisor Shawn Nelson abstained, but not without taking a swipe at the imagined ulterior motives of the Newport Beach City Council. Without a shred of evidence, he implied the city acted "to get certain undesirables off the beach." Class warfare plays well at the polls. The concept of evidence seems to be consistently lacking.

Some days I feel hopelessly outnumbered. Then, I see more people are becoming aware of the health risks of breathing wood smoke. More agencies throughout North America and the world are regulating wood smoke. I see China turning to California for help to set up agencies like the AQMD.

In spite of elected officials trying to bully the process, it really is about health. Wood smoke really can lead to serious illness and premature death. Let's look to the AQMD instead of Gidget to guide us in the right direction.

My thanks to all the staff at the Daily Pilot for the job you do. I can't imagine life without the Pilot. But I especially wanted to congratulate Photo Editor Don Leach for his recent Times Editorial Award.

Many times I have looked at a photo in the paper and said to myself, "What a fantastic shot!" I then check the credit and almost always it is Don Leach. Don has to be an inspiration to anyone who is an aspiring photojournalist. Let me know when the coffee table book is published!